Indian Warships Arrive In Cambodia After South China Sea Exercise, Amid Reports Of China's New Naval Base In The Country

Two Indian Navy ships, INS Satpura and INS Delhi, have docked at the port of Sihanoukville in Cambodia as part of a port call. This comes amid reports of China constructing a secret naval base in the country.

The Indian Navy ships arrived in Cambodia after participating in the first-ever ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME 2023) held in the South China Sea. These exercises angered the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), which sent militia vessels to intimidate the ASEAN navies involved.

The two Indian Navy ships will remain at the port of Sihanoukville from 11 to 14 May, the Indian government said in the statement adding that, "personnel from both the navies will engage in a wide range of professional interactions, deck visits and sports exchanges, aimed at enhancing interoperability and mutual understanding".

The statement further said, "the visit of the Indian Naval ships seeks to consolidate the strong bonds of friendship that exist between the two countries, by strengthening maritime cooperation".

This port call is coming in the backdrop of China constructing a naval base in Cambodia's Ream, in the Gulf of Thailand.

According to reports, the base will be capable of housing not only warships but Aircraft carriers, as well. Earlier, in July 2022, Wall Street Journal published a report that claimed that the Chinese and Cambodia are working on a deal to lease the base for thirty years.

However, Phnom Penh rubbished the reports saying that, "granting access to the base would be in violation of Cambodia’s constitution".

The base will allow China to store weapons, berth and service warships, and post naval personnel. This will be the second Chinese naval base outside of the country and the first in the Indo-Pacific.

India and China have been in a tense standoff for more than three years along the entire Line of Actual Control (LAC). The port call in Cambodia and the AIME exercises come just weeks after Indian and Chinese Foreign and Defence Ministers met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.

A week before the summit, Indian and Chinese PLA commanders held the 18th round of corp commander talks to resolve issues. However, neither the corp commanders nor the foreign and defence ministers meetings were able to end the standoff.